No goaltender played more games or earned more victories in a Hershey Bears uniform than Gordon “Red” Henry, a fact largely lost on the team’s fan base because of when he suited up.

“Not many people talk about Red,” said former Hershey great Willie Marshall, “but they should look up his career record. He was really something.”

Henry, who died in 1972 at age 46, was among five new members inducted into the Hershey Bears Hockey Club Hall of Fame prior to Sunday’s game against the Providence Bruins at Giant Center. He was joined by Arnie Kullman and Tim Tookey in the players category along with J. Bruce McKinney and Ken Hatt in the builders category.

Marshall, the AHL’s all-time leader in games played (1,205), goals (523), assists (852) and points (1,375), said Henry was among the top goalies he ever faced.

“I did not play with Red in Hershey but I played against him when I was with the Pittsburgh Hornets,” Marshall said Sunday afternoon. “He was a standout goalie in the league. Unlike most goalies, he was left-handed, holding the stick in his left hand. That was unique.

“Red played a stand-up style, and I always found it hard to score on him. He didn’t flop down on the ice. He was definitely one of the best in his era.”

View full sizePlaques honoring the Hershey Bears Hockey Club Hall of Fame Class of 2013 inductees can be seen on the Giant Center concourse located behind Sections 118-119.DAVE SOTTILE | dsottile@pennlive.com

Henry, who played in Hershey from 1944-45 to 1954-55, saw action in 510 games and earned 226 wins. He ranks third in career shutouts (18), and backstopped the Bears to their first Calder Cup title in 1947. That spring, Henry went 8-3 with five shutouts.

Why don’t more people know about the 6-foot, 175-pound redheaded netminder?

“There’s some geography behind it, because after he retired he went back to Ontario,” said Gordon Henry Jr., the goalie’s son. “The glory days were over, so he transitioned to a new life by getting a job and moving on.

“He distanced himself from hockey and passed away at an early age. I think that’s part of why there’s a knowledge gap and vacuum about him and his career because he wasn’t around.”

Henry played three regular-season games and made five playoff appearances in the NHL for the Boston Bruins, when the league consisted of just six teams and featured but one goalie per team.

Don Scott, a public address announcer for the Bears since 1991, remembers watching Henry play in Hershey as a kid and vividly recalls a part of the goalie’s routine.

“In the old arena, when the Bears came out, they played the song ‘Chocolate Soldier’ from an operetta,” Scott said. “The team would come out numerically, so he would come out first as No. 1 and he’d always flip the puck up and try to hit the speakers. That was his signature entrance to the ice.”

Tookey, who played 529 games in parts of seven seasons in Hershey during three separate stints from 1980 to 1994, said it’s important to remember pioneering players such as Henry from the franchise’s early days.

Tim Tookey was inducted into the Hershey Bears Hockey Club Hall of Fame on Sunday.DAVE SOTTILE | dsottile@pennlive.com

“Anyone who plays for this organization or any organization, when you’re recognized for your accomplishments, it’s a great honor,” Tookey said. “I know these families are so proud of what their dads did. It’s a great honor for me and all of us. I know those guys are with us in spirit today.”

Tookey ranks second on the club’s all-time points list (693), second in career assists (442) and third in goals (251). But the fan favorite just marvels at what Henry accomplished, playing virtually every minute of every game during his run in Chocolatetown.

“To be able to compete at the level that he did every night is what’s really something,” Tookey said. “Back in his day, there was no Gatorade or sports supplements. All he had was water.

“And every game in his day, with the weight of his pads and gear, he probably lost 10 pounds each time out. Then he’d turn around and play the next game. For what he did, it’s unbelievable. I don’t think there’s any way someone could do it today.”

Marshall, a charter member of the AHL Hall of Fame, believes Henry deserves similar league-wide honors.

“He’s in this [Hershey] hall of fame now, and I think the American League should look over his record again,” Marshall said. “People talk about [AHL Hall of Famers] Johnny Bower and Gil Mayer, but Red was right there with them.”

Such talk puts a smile on the face of Gordon Henry Jr., who loves to share stories he heard from his mom about game nights at Hersheypark Arena.

“It was such a different time when my dad played,” Henry said. “They had an orchestra instead of an organist. Everybody got dressed up in suits to go to the games.

“Hershey was a rocking place to play hockey back then. It had a state-of-the-art facility. It was fantastic for everybody involved.”

BLOODLINES RUN DEEP: Current Bears equipment manager Justin Kullman accepted the hall-of-fame plaque on behalf of his grandfather Arnie, who died in 1999.

Arnie Kullman’s games-played (753) and goals (253) rank second in team history, and his point total (619) is third-best. He played for the Bears from 1948-49 through 1959-60 and won back-to-back Calder Cups in the spring of 1958 and 1959.

View full sizeFans attending games at Giant Center can view memorabilia from members of the newest Hershey Bears Hockey Club Hall of Fame induction class on the concourse behind Sections 118-119.DAVE SOTTILE | dsottile@pennlive.com

“The biggest thing for me is that my son has followed in his footsteps,” said Terry Kullman, Arnie’s son and Justin’s father. “One night when Justin was very young, I grabbed the diaper bag and told his mother, ‘We’re taking him to the hockey game’ and he was riveted. The first two games we took him to, we made it all the way through the second period. After that, we went to all the games, he sat through them and loved them, and look at where he is now.

“Hockey’s in his blood. He’s been with the Bears now as long as my dad had been.”

NOTES: NBC Sports hockey play-by-play broadcaster Mike Emrick, a former Derry Township resident, served as emcee for the pregame ceremony for the second straight year. … Fans attending games at Giant Center can view the Hershey Bears Hockey Club Hall of Fame plaques and memorabilia from the 2013 inductees on the concourse wall located behind Sections 118-119, next to the Hershey Bears Booster Club tables.